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Impacts of pollution on the chesapeake bay
What are some of the environmental consequences associated with eutrophication in the Chesapeake Bay
Impacts of pollution on the chesapeake bay
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Chesapeake Bay is known to be an extremely complex living system, and has been greatly disturbed over the past years. But there's been a problem around this watershed the past couple of years. The health of the Bay has been on a downward roll, and something is needed to be done in order to halt it. There have been multiple different attempts to try and reverse the damage that has been done. But, what has made the Bay get to this point; why is it important to restore; and what can be done to fix the health of Chesapeake Bay?
First of all, Chesapeake Bay has been greatly affected by human activity. For instance, as stated in Source 1, " Residential developments replace wetlands, forests and meadows". So humans living space, is taking over the places in which many organisms live; such as the wetlands and forests. Another example of human activity that has affected the ecosystem at Chesapeake Bay is explained again in Source 1 saying, "Intensive hunting practices led to the serious decline or extinction of
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some species like bison, turkeys, wolves and certain fish" So, humans haven't really controlled what they do, causing a huge change in the wildlife that was once there. Obviously, humans have had a significant part in affecting Chesapeake Bay negatively. It has changed the ecosystem entirely, affecting the life that is being supported there. Also, it is of great importance to restore the Bay.
A first reason that the Bay should be restored, is because as explained in Source 2 , "The resulting low dissolved oxygen concentrations drive blue crabs from their preferred habitat and kill many of the small bottom organisms on which the blue crabs feed." Because human's outlet a lot of nutrients, it causes an excess growth of algea, which ends up inhibiting the blue crab and other organisms, and can possibly lead to extiction. It is important to save the many species that live in the area. Another reason in it pf great importance to save Chesapeake Bay, is because there are plants which serve as food to many other organisms, that are going extinct. For instance, "the atamasco lily"(Source 1). It has been in a great decline, and it supports many other life sources, if nothing is done to try and save it, then there will be even more animals or other life that will be hurt. It is important to save
wildlife. Finally, there are a few ways that Chesapeake Bay could be refurbished. To begin, the reduction of, "Phosphorus and nitrogen pollution"(Source 2) will help cleanup the Bay. This will help reduce the excess nutrients being dispersed, and therefore, the life of the animals there will be less impaired. Another way that Chesapeake Bay can be fixed, is by humans no longer extending into the wilderness around this watershed. If this were to happen, then the ecosystem can further flourish. A final way in which Chesapeake Bay can be replenished, is by "Cleaning up their habitat and regulating hunting"(Source 1). This has most definitely already had an impact already, considering helping the rockfish species reburst. So if hunting and fishing is limited, the food chain will not be bothered, and the Bay's ecosystem will improve. Overall, human's have greatly impaired Chesapeake Bay. Human's have let out excess nutrients that have caused excess growth of algae that hurts all other life.This includes enabling plants to grow.Also, it is important to restore this beautiful area. And there are already things being done to help replenish the area, but more must be done. Chesapeake bay has been greatly affected by humans, but it is also humans that can help bring it back to health.
The Chesapeake and New England regions were settled by people of English descent, but by 1700, they had become two distinctly different societies. They had evolved so differently, mainly because of the way that the settlers followed their religion, their way of conducting politics and demographics in the colonies. Even though the settlers came from the same homeland: England, each group had its own reasons for coming to the New World and different ideas planned for the colonies.
The Crusades of the middle ages introduced much innovative and formerly unheard of merchandise into Western Europe; however the scarcity of these luxury goods instilled Europeans with drive to find easier access to the Far East. Although desired "Northwest Passage" never was found, joint-stock companies, like the Virginia Company of London, settled colonies in the New World for untapped resources such as silver and other tradable goods. Many more corporations followed suit, settling mainly in the Chesapeake Bay area, their small settlements eventually developing into the Chesapeake colonies. The Chesapeake colonies were focused primarily on profitable enterprises. At the same time, the New England colonies were being settled with a whole different set of initiatives, principally religious freedoms and family. Governing bodies were established, with their success dependent on the quality of the settlers the colony attracted. The different motives for settlement affected the routine events in such a way that the New England and Chesapeake colonies differed very greatly from one another even though they were both mainly settled by the English.
Looking at the early English colonies in the Chesapeake Bay region, it’s clear that the English had not learned any lessons from their experiences at Roanoke. Poor planning, a bad location, unrealistic expectations, flawed leadership, unsuccessful relations with the local Indians, and no hope of finding the mineral wealth the Spanish found in Mexico, all contributed to failure. The first colonists in the Chesapeake region were not only ignorant, lazy and unambitious, but their attempts were hampered before they had begun. However, a solution to these problems was found in a single plant: tobacco. Nevertheless, this cash crop ultimately created numerous problems for the colonists. The ignorance and indolent acts of the Chesapeake colonists to unsuccessfully restore the colony by themselves led to the demise of the colony as a whole especially regarding the planting of agricultural goods for food.
During the 1600's, many people in the American colonies led very many different lives, some better than others. While life was hard for some groups, other colonists were healthy and happy. Two groups that display such a difference are the colonists of New England and Chesapeake Bay. New Englanders enjoyed a much higher standard of living. This high standard of New England's was due to many factors, including a healthier environment, better family situation, and a high rate of reproduction.
During the late 16th century and into the 17th century, European nations rapidly colonized the newly discovered Americas. England in particular sent out numerous groups to the eastern coast of North America to two regions. These two regions were known as the Chesapeake and the New England areas. Later, in the late 1700's, these two areas would bond to become one nation. Yet from the very beginnings, both had very separate and unique identities. These differences, though very numerous, spurred from one major factor: the very reason the settlers came to the New World. This affected the colonies in literally every way, including economically, socially, and politically.
During the 1700's, people in the American colonies lived in very distinctive societies. While some colonists led hard lives, others were healthy and prosperous. The two groups who showed these differences were the colonists of the New England and Chesapeake Bay areas. The differentiating characteristics among the Chesapeake and New England colonies developed due to economy, religion, and motives for colonial expansion. The colonists of the New England area possessed a very happy and healthy life. This high way of living was due in part to better farming, a healthier environment, and a high rate of production because of more factories. The colonists of the Chesapeake Bay region, on the other hand, led harder lives compared to that of the colonists of New England. The Chesapeake Bay had an unhealthy environment, bad eating diets, and intolerable labor.
This ad is directed to many people in the Chesapeake Bay region because there are tons of pollution each year that are destroying the nation’s largest estuary, or part of a body of water where the fresh and salt water mix, and are also killing the Bay’s crabs, oysters, and fish, which is a huge industry in the area and also something the state of Maryland is known nationally for (Environment, p. 8). Pollution is destroying the Chesapeake Bay every single day, however now people are taking steps in the right direction to fix this problem but many people fear that time has run out.
The Chesapeake Bay is the nation’s largest estuary with six major tributaries, the James, the Potomac, the Susquehanna, the Patuxent, the York, and the Rappahannock Rivers, feeding into the bay from various locations in Maryland, Virginia, Pennsylvania, and the District of Columbia (Chemical Contaminants in the Chesapeake Bay – Workshop Discussion 1). These areas depend on the Bay as both an environmental and an economic resource. Throughout the last 15 years the Chesapeake Bay has suffered from elevated levels of pollution. Nitrogen and phosphorous from wastewater treatment plants, farmland, air pollution, and development all lead to reduced water clarity and lowered oxygen levels, which harm fish, crabs, oysters and underwater grasses (Key Commission Issues 1). There are other types of pollution in the bay such as toxic chemicals, but because nutrient pollution is the most significant and most widespread in the Bay its effects are the most harmful to fisheries. Nitrogen and phosphorous fuel algal blooms which cloud the water and block sunlight from reaching underwater grass beds that provide food and habitat for waterfowl, juvenile fish, blue crabs, and other species (Blankenship 11-12). Algae plays a vital role in the food chain by providing food for small fish and oysters. However, when there is an overabundance of algae it dies, sinks to the bottom of the Bay, and decomposes in such a manner that depletes the oxygen levels of the Bay (11). The reduced oxygen levels in the Bay reduce the carrying capacity of the environment and these “dead areas” sometimes kill off species that can not migrate to other areas of the Bay, such as oysters (11). Increased abundance of algal blooms also led to the overabundance of harmful and toxic algae species and microbes such as the microbe Pfiesteria, which was responsible in 1997 for eating fish alive and making dozens of people sick (12). The heightened awareness of diseases that can be contracted through consumption of contaminated fish also has an economic impact. Therefore, the excess levels of nitrogen and phosphorous have fueled an overabundance of algal blooms, which has reduced water clarity and lowered oxygen levels, affecting many species within the bay and ultimately the industries that rely on these species.
For many years now scientists and researchers have been paying their attention to the bay. Millions of dollars and hundreds of hours have been spent to return the bay to its glory. However, with all that has been done the bay is still in danger and the work is no where near complete. In 2005 the bay's health was evaluated at a “D”. (Chesapeake Bay Restoration)
Even though Massachusetts was the “most populous, influential, and powerful of the New England colonies” and New England as a whole was considered a healthier environment than the Chesapeake colonies, disease was still a major issue (Taylor, pg. 166). Due to the fact of the new environment, weather, location change, lack of access to food and fresh water, and close proximity, disease and death were inevitable during the colonial era. Massachusetts was no exception. According to Pond, the people were “subject to disease,” and had “died of the scurvy and of the burning fever two hundred and odd” (Pond, pg. 94). Ultimately, if a colonist did not die from the extremely high fever, they were immobilized inside their own bodies and unable to walk.
Estuaries offer many benefits. The natural barrier they provide can help prevent floods, they help filter the water in our oceans, the fish there are a major source of protein as well as helping maintain the fish population in the ocean. Estuaries also provide jobs, recreation, Since they are the most productive ecosystems in the world they are extremely important to mankind. It is not surprising that the biggest threat to estuaries is mankind. They have been filled in, dredged, or ove...
Globally coastal wetlands are disappearing at an alarming rate, the problem is most of society does not realize the value of these precious wetlands. Coastal wetlands provide an important role in the coastal ecosystem. “Coastal wetlands provide critical services such as absorbing energy from coastal storms, preserving shorelines, protecting human populations and infrastructure, supporting commercial seafood harvests, absorbing pollutants and serving as critical habitat for migratory bird populations”(Anonymous, 2011). Coastal wetlands are an economical asset as well as an environmental one.
I do believe that these Invasive and Exotic species have even altered the Chesapeake Bay region and that these alterations aren’t always predictable! For instance, Oysters in the Chesapeake Bay have suffered since their parasites Dermo and MSX were introduced into the area as exotics.(3) Oysters fundamental role is to abolish the algae in the water; yet with the decline of oysters there is a major demolish in the bay ecosystem. (3) This is not just affecting the bay, it is also affecting oyster fishery bringing much economic loss. (3) Other examples would include the mute swan; which acts aggressive towards other birds in the area. (2) Even though there are many downfalls to these species many could bring good.
The coast is defined as the place where the land and the sea meet. This includes the adjacent waters, as well as the shoreline and extends so far landward and seaward (Post & Lundin, 1996). The width of the coastal zone varies due to the seasonal changes and any adjustments, whether natural or manmade. While preventative measures must be put in place to mitigate these effects, procedures must also be put in place to ensure that the coastal zone can bounce back from the impact of these effects. Martinez et al. defines coastal resilience as “a measure of the system’s capacity to respond to the consequences of perturbation” (2017). Coastal resilience usually refers to the coastal zone’s ability to thrive and repair themselves after being affected
The oceans need to be protected because it is where life began and if not taken care of, life as we know it will end. When dangerous substances go into the ocean, ecosystems are suffer and become endangered along with lives of people and of marine life. Surfrider Foundation recognizes the importance of protecting and preserving the quality and biodiversity of the world's coasts because they are truly irreplaceable. There is also historical evidence of ocean pollution being present in the past, but the problem still lingers today. Heal the Bay discovered that,“Did you know there is a DDT and PCB hot spot off the coast of Palos Verdes? This superfund site (which indicates it's one of the most polluted places in the United States), is left over from a 1930's era chemical plant. Because DDT takes so long to break down in the marine environment, it persists to this day, contaminating certain species of fish. There are also highly polluted sediments in the Long Beach area, a sign of the heavy shipping in the port. Heal the Bay works on developing effective capping and removal plans to keep those toxins from spreading” (Heal the Bay). DDT is still highly concentrated in the South Bay area and still contaminating different species of fish. Even after more than 80 years DDT, a toxic insecticide, is still very concentrated and during upwellings, DDT particles come back up and continue to harm marine life. If humans are careless about what is thrown on the floor or sprayed on lawns, it can lead to disastrous affects when it comes to the condition of the ocean's ecosystems, and can endanger life itself leading to a problem that only we can mend.